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An early Holocene reef in the western Atlantic: submersible investigations of a deep relict reef off the west coast of Barbados, W. I.
Title
An early Holocene reef in the western Atlantic: submersible investigations of a deep relict reef off the west coast of Barbados, W. I.
Creator
Macintyre, I. G., Rutzler, K., Norris, James N., Smith, K. P., Cairns, S. D., Bucher, K. E., Steneck, R. S., Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
Date Issued
1991
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/FCLA/DT/3333188
Subject Headings
Reefs, Relicts (Biology), Holocene Epoch, Barbados, Submersibles
Format
Document (PDF)
EXPANDED CORAL-REEF DEVELOPMENT OFF SOUTHEAST FLORIDA DURING THE LATE HOLOCENE
Title
EXPANDED CORAL-REEF DEVELOPMENT OFF SOUTHEAST FLORIDA DURING THE LATE HOLOCENE.
Creator
Modys, Alexander B., Oleinik, Anton E., Florida Atlantic University, Department of Geosciences, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description
Coral reefs around the globe have undergone widespread degradation due to a myriad of natural and anthropogenic stressors. Climate warming, in particular, has emerged as an especially pressing threat, reshaping not only the biodiversity of coral-reef ecosystems worldwide, but also undermining the vital ecosystem services they provide. Yet amidst this decline, there is growing evidence that many coral species are expanding their ranges poleward into historically cooler subtropical and...
Show moreCoral reefs around the globe have undergone widespread degradation due to a myriad of natural and anthropogenic stressors. Climate warming, in particular, has emerged as an especially pressing threat, reshaping not only the biodiversity of coral-reef ecosystems worldwide, but also undermining the vital ecosystem services they provide. Yet amidst this decline, there is growing evidence that many coral species are expanding their ranges poleward into historically cooler subtropical and temperate marine environments thereby establishing critical refugia in response to climate warming. However, understanding the long-term viability and potential of these emerging refugia under ongoing climate change remains an area of active research, constrained by the temporal limitations of modern ecological studies. In addressing these challenges, this dissertation explores insights from a newly discovered late Holocene record of coral community development off southeast Florida, shedding light on historical coral range expansions, and providing critical context for assessing the future response of reef-building coral communities to continued climate warming. Using a combination of high-precision uranium-thorium dating and detailed paleoecological analysis of well-preserved subfossil coral skeletons, we provide new evidence that diverse coral communities dominated by Acropora spp. expanded to the nearshore hardbottom habitats off northern Broward County during a period of warming in the subtropical western Atlantic between 3500 and 1800 years before present. However, despite this historical precedent of range expansion in response to regional warming, modern comparisons reveal a significant shift towards low diversity coral assemblages dominated by stress-tolerant coral taxa, suggesting that ongoing range expansions may be constrained by new challenges that were absent during the late Holocene. These findings underscore the need for comprehensive conservation strategies informed by historical baselines to navigate the complex dynamics of coral reefs in the face of climate change.
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Date Issued
2023
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00014271
Subject Headings
Coral reefs and islands--Florida, Holocene Epoch, Climate change, Anthropogenic Effects
Format
Document (PDF)